Adam Hadwin wasn’t gambling in Las Vegas this week—he was all business.
The Abbotsford, BC native, who is playing his first full season on the PGA Tour, shot 8-under 63 in his final round at the Shriners Hospital for Children Open in Las Vegas on Sunday to move up 43 spots on the leaderboard. He finished in a tie for 10th, his first top 10 showing on the PGA Tour since 2011 when he made a handful of starts and finished in a tie for fourth at the RBC Canadian Open.
Hadwin joked that he hadn’t spent a nickel at the tables in Vegas through Sunday, but that might change after his surprise finish to the tournament.
“Who knows what might happen tonight,” he said, adding he had friends in town to watch the tournament.
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It was the second cut Hadwin has made in two starts on the PGA Tour this year since topping the Web.com Tour money list. That success gives him full status on the PGA Tour this season and Hadwin says he plans to make the most of it.
“I don’t want to let my expectations get ahead of me, but I’m playing pretty good golf at the moment,” he said. “If I keep doing this it is only a matter of time and good things will happen.”
Hadwin wasn’t the only Canadian who had a solid week. Brantford, Ont.’s David Hearn shot 3-under 68 in the final round to move up to a tie for 7th, six shots behind winner Ben Martin. Abbotsford’s Nick Taylor, also a rookie on tour, record a 1-under 70 on the final day to make his first cut on the PGA Tour this year and finish in a tie for 56th.
Hadwin admits his success this weekend sort of snuck up on him. In his first six rounds on the PGA Tour in the 2014-15 season, Hadwin wasn’t confident in his game.
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“I wasn’t always sure where the ball was going,” he said. “This week I decided I’d just play for the middle of greens and be careful. On Saturday I started feeling much more comfortable out there.”
Hadwin said his Sunday round started strongly and continued to build. He had four consecutive birdies on the front nine and made the turn at 30. He recorded three other birdies on the back nine, including a clutch birdie on the par 5 16th.
“On the front nine I was never more than 15 or 20 feet away from the hole on any green,” he explained.
How does it rank with his best rounds? Hadwin says it was special.
“It is certainly up there,” he said. “I struck the ball so well all day.”
Hadwin plans to play the remaining tournaments on the PGA Tour heading into Christmas, including the McGladrey Classic in Sea Island, Georgia, this coming week.
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